Moroccans on Saturday were still searching for survivors buried on the hillside slopes and under rubble where houses of mud brick, stone, and rough wood were cracked open and mosque minarets toppled by an earthquake that struck late on Friday.
The historic old city of Marrakech also suffered extensive damage.
Video footage showed rescue workers hugging with joy after successfully pulling someone alive from the flattened ruins of a building in the town of Moulay Barahim.
The Interior Ministry said 2,012 people had been killed and 2,059 injured, including 1,404 in critical condition. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake had a magnitude of 6.8 with an epicenter some 72 km southwest of Marrakech.
